Residents wary of bank at busy intersection

By: Stephanie Prokop
   BORDENTOWN CITY— Monday night, residents came to the City Commission meeting to voice concerns about safety and aesthetics at a proposed Commerce Bank at Crosswicks Street and Route 130.
   The mayor said Commerce Bank representatives had approached the city commissioners about buying a city-owned parcel in addition to the privately owned parcel, where the Liberty gas station is now located.
   According to Mayor John Collom, the city property is .6 acres, measures about 100 by 250 feet and will go up for sealed bids starting at $800,000 on June 28.
   The bidding is open to the pubic, and will take place at City Hall, 324 Farnsworth Ave. The city would be gaining an estimated tax income of $42,000 to $47,000 if the bank locates there, said Mayor Collom.
   Mayor Collom said the gas station owners have already agreed to sell their land, and that the Commerce Bank property would make use of both pieces of land for their property.
   The city-owned parcel is occupied by the Bordentown City Water Utility, and is being used to store equipment.
   The new home for the water utility building would be near the water tower at the adjacent Gilder Field.
   Some residents asked the commissioners questions about safety at the intersection of Route 130 and Crosswicks Street.
   "I think that by due diligence, the Planning Board would not approve the plan for Commerce to build a bank on that corner if they did not think that it would be safe," said Commissioner James Lynch. "The Department of Transportation is already looking into that intersection (for safety)."
   Mayor Collom said commissioners are not privy to the way that Commerce Bank chooses its bank locations, but he speculated that they may have looked at other pieces of property in the city and decided to go forward with the parcel on Crosswicks Street.
   Mayor Collom said that the new water facility building would be about 1,800 square feet and would hopefully employ "green," or environmentally responsible, building techniques. The building was expected to cost around $400,000 to build, said the mayor.
   Other residents asked how the bank building would meld with the overall character of the city.
   "It think that it’s not fair that you didn’t see the layout plan that I saw," said Mr. Lynch. "In the plan, the bank is a beautiful brick building with nicely landscaped lots that could serve as an overflow parking area for the Carslake Community Center when the bank is not open," he added.
   Both the commissioners and the mayor said they did not think that the bank will take business away from the Farmers and Mechanic Bank and the Sterling Bank, both of which are located on Farnsworth Avenue.
   "Banks tend to come and go," said Mayor Collom, "and if Commerce Bank eventually does leave the city, we have the use of a lovely building to use in the future."